Ruinous comments, devaluing talent and too many fall-outs: the tale of Hibs and Florian Kamberi's long goodbye

So, farewell then, Florian Kamberi. Your occasionally pointless stepovers probably won’t be missed, but your 30 goals in a Hibs shirt will be. This afternoon’s transfer to St Gallen has brought closure to one of longest goodbyes.

Social media feeds have been full of unprintable comments and references to doors hitting the player on a certain part of his body, and it’s fair to say that most Hibs supporters are probably glad to see the back of him.

But there was a time when he was the great (green and) white hope, the latest gem unearthed from overseas by the Capital club’s recruitment team.

When Kamberi cracked an 18-yard effort into the goal off the underside of the crossbar 28 minutes into his debut against Motherwell on January 31, 2018, it kickstarted an astonishing end to the 2017/18 campaign for Hibs in which they came agonisingly close to snatching second place in their first season back in the top flight.

For the remainder of the season Kamberi and fellow loanee Jamie Maclaren struck up a deft partnership in attack. The football was exhilarating at times and the pair finished the season with 17 goals between them.

You’d have been hard pushed to find a Hibs fan who wasn’t desperate to see the duo return the following season but, much like Stevie Cowan and Gordon Durie in the 1985/86 season, it was merely a brief fling; the footballing equivalent of the girl or boy you meet on holiday and with whom you have the perfect summer romance.

Things were never really the same after that golden period. Maclaren struggled with injury and first-team chances, and Kamberi’s form took a dip towards the end of the calendar year, not helped by Neil Lennon repeatedly singling him out for criticism during a bad run of form for the team.

The situation boiled over at the now infamous team meeting at East Mains in January 2019, Kamberi storming out of the room after being targeted again by Lennon and having to be persuaded by team-mates to stay after clearing out his locker and threatening to leave.

The incident was shortly followed by Lennon’s from the Hibs hotset and, although Kamberi regained form under the Northern Irishman’s successor Paul Heckingbottom, he hinted last summer that he viewed Hibs as a stepping stone in his career. The arrival of Christian Doidge, coupled with Yorkshireman’s preference for playing one up front, suggested that his days in the Capital were numbered.

His spell under Heckingbottom accelerated his downward trajectory at Hibs. Often played out of position on the flank, Kamberi’s impact was diluted at a time when, with much of his contract still to run, Hibs would have wanted to maximise his value. In the end, £150,000 and a sell-on clause means Hibs have not lost out on their investment to Grasshopper Zurich, but there was a time when Hibs rated him in the £3million bracket. His performances in a mediocre Hibs team of that era did little to enhance his status.

When Heckingbottom departed, Kamberi enjoyed a brief resurgence in form first under the caretaker coaching team of Eddie May, Grant Murray, and Steven Whittaker, and then under Jack Ross and John Potter. But it spoke volumes that Hibs fans didn’t seem too alarmed at the prospect of losing Kamberi to Rangers for a half-a-season, especially with Greg Docherty coming in the opposite direction.

He certainly didn’t help himself with his comments in the hours after his arrival at Ibrox. Declaring himself a “very, very happy man” during an interview with Rangers TV, Kamberi added: “Ever since I came to Scotland it has been a dream for me to move to Rangers.

“For me, Ibrox is the best atmosphere I have ever played in. My second game for Hibs was against Rangers at Ibrox and after the game, I told my agent immediately my dream would be to play in this stadium in front of these fans as they are the best fans in the world – the support is massive.”

Footballers are ambitious, but there’s a line – especially when there are still 18 months remaining on a contract with a parent club.

The remarks endeared Kamberi to the Rangers fans, damaged his reputation with Hibs supporters beyond repair, and most likely sealed the end of his time in the Capital.

Ross branded the comments unusual, and Hibs fans worked overtime on Instagram as they flooded the player’s profile with snake, rat, and middle-finger emoji.

Kamberi isn’t the first, and he certainly won’t be the last young footballer to make an ill-judged comment. But to paint him as the pantomime villain does him a disservice.

Non-footballing posts on his social media hinted at a family-oriented individual who would often meet up with those from a similar cultural background during his time in Scotland. It's worth remembering that he arrived in Edinburgh as a 22-year-old having only ever played in Switzerland and Germany, two countries where he spoke the language and wasn’t ever too far from friends and relatives.

Despite that, he often went out of his way to get tickets for fans, and made a point of giving his shirt to a young supporter after a win at Livingston.

Footballers have a short career and Kamberi will be keen to maximise his opportunities. By joining St Gallen he is returning to his homeland, he will be near family, and he has Europa League football to look forward to and potentially a title race next term.

Regardless of his comments in January, Kamberi was part of one of the most exciting attacking Hibs teams in recent history. Some of his goals were excellent – a vicious strike at Celtic Park, a late winner in a rousing win over Asteras Tripolis. He scored a hat-trick for Hibs in Europe, albeit against Faroese opponents, the second of his Hibs career. Not many Hibs players have that claim to fame.

His final flourish in a Hibs shirt was his solo strike in the 3-0 win against Aberdeen in early December, possibly his best effort for the club in a technical sense.

Sometimes, relationships run their course and the people involved are best to go their separate ways.

Kamberi and Hibs made some good memories, but the time was right for both to make a clean break.